Battlefield 1: Powerful stories of WW1 told well

Mark Furler is APN Australian Regional Media’s group digital editor. He’s an award-winning journalist who has lived and worked on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast for more than 25 years. He’s passionate about fighting for a better go for locals. His awards include APN Editor of the Year, and involvement in three PANPA Newspaper of the Year wins for the Sunshine Coast Daily.

BATTLEFIELD 1 is so much more than a game. It's a powerful story of the brutality of war, a reminder of the courage of ordinary people who sacrificed for king and country.

Poignant episodes that are more like a mini series combine with brutal encounters and superb gameplay to make Battlefield 1 one of the great first person shooters.

Unlike my eldest son, I'm not a huge fan of the shoot 'em up genre.

But Battlefield 1 is so much more than just about blowing up enemies.

It tells stories of World War I as it puts you in the shoes of soldiers from countries across the globe, whether it be as an Australian fighting on the shores of Gallipoli or a foreigner in a fighter plane.

This incredibly well crafted offering from DICE offers a series of all too short campaigns as well as a incredible 64 multiplayer combat experience.

You choose your solo campaigns by hovering over the earth to be given descriptions of battles ranging from riding horseback in the desert to driving tanks.

The sheer horror of war is captured in haunting detail.

Bodies strewn across your path, the moans of agony as a flamethrower spews a fiery storm your way.

This is war. And it ain't pretty.

But it's far from glorifying violence. Instead weaving through storylines to highlight the sacrifices made for our freedoms alongside facts from history's pages.

I played the game on an Xbox One. The level of detail is remarkable from the mud of the trenches to the dust exploding with gunfire.

The stories include joining a British crew driving a tank through France; flying as an American pilot in the skies and as an Italian soldier covered in armour leading your men up the mountains.

While we haven't yet spent much time in multiplayer mode, the large-scale welfare is winning plenty of rave reviews.

Already Battlefield 1 has racked up more than 59 million hours of gameplay and nine million hours of operations.

Throughout the campaign there are plenty of landmark structures to explore and destroy, and an endless array of weapons to test.

The game has a nice emphasis on strategy.

One of the best stories we enjoyed involved the iconic Lawrence of Arabia.

You play an Arab rebel who is depicted as Lawrence's right hand.

Armed with very little, you have to scout out enemy encampments using stealth attacks, find the equipment needed, before the frantic final confrontation.